


When he says

by Silent_Observer_of_time



Series: Alterations in the Timeline of Timelines [8]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Action, Character Analysis, Character Study, Companions, Family, Family Issues, Friendship, Gen, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Judgement Hall, Loneliness, Protective Siblings, Reaction, References to Depression, Sans Remembers Resets, Siblings, Undertale Reset Issues, Undertale Saves and Resets
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-21
Updated: 2018-08-29
Packaged: 2019-02-18 01:31:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,660
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13089597
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silent_Observer_of_time/pseuds/Silent_Observer_of_time
Summary: Bored... So I decided to do this one-shot.Will lenghten it or not? Not sure really.





	1. Chapter 1

When he says **I** **LOVE** **YOU** , Papyrus meant it in a friendly way. 

This is evident when you become Papyrus' friend.

Most of the time, Papyrus tends to hug, cheer, hold hands, follow, and hold hang-outs to strengthen his relationship with his loved ones.

If you didn't know any better, you'd think Papyrus is flirting with you.

Well...

Papyrus doesn't know that.

He only knows the actions of flirting by reading the book and listening to his best friend.

No one bothers to point that out though...

Because he doesn't have much friends.

 

His older brother places it upon himself to watch over Papyrus when something unfamiliar happens,

Being protective for his coolest energetic younger brother.

 

* * *

 

When Sans says **i** **love** **you** , he meant it in a very serious sense.

This is because the timelines keep on repeating.

Most of the time, Sans tends to tease, praise, observe, lead, and invite date nights to show his love for his loved ones.

If you didn't know any better, you'd think Sans is a playing with you.

However...

Sans doesn't know that.

He does this subconsciously, clinging onto a shred of HOPE you gave him on the first run.

Everyone uses this to their advantage

Because Sans needs a support in life.

 

His younger brother is the one who warns or tells Sans to be more cautious and concious on his actions

Since he's worried for his second coolest brother's wellbeing.

 

'SAD HOW SANS _DOESN'T ALWAYS LISTEN_  TO HIM.'

* * *

 

 

When he says **I** **UNDERSTAND** , Papyrus filters the words mentioned accordingly.

For insults, Papyrus takes all of it with a positive meaning.

Insults don't hurt him as he finds these as meaningful criticisms or a reflection of a person's insecurity.

For compliments, Papyrus takes it with a blush or smile.

Shockingly,

Papyrus thinks of praises as a way of the entity to flirt with him.

He is greatly affected when the person (especially a friend) shows sincerity in their words.

Rarely does anyone do this to him though...

Because Papyrus' standards are too low.

 

The older brother doesn't really care about what others think about his brother

Unless he sees his brother negatively affected by something.

 

'strange how papyrus _doesn't_ _tell_ him off.'

* * *

 

 

When sans says **i** **understand** , he takes it two ways.

Jokingly, smiling through the truth and lies hidden beneath the thorns;

Or silently, smiling it out with a dark feeling in his SOUL.

Sans is really perceptive to the fact around things and he hates it.

Unfortunately,

Sans doesn't forget anything or anyone who's done something to him or anyone else.

Sans slowly gets numb to the pain or atrocity, especially when it's done to him countless times.

This is why everyone twists his arm

Because they want Sans to be dynamic again.

 

His coolest brother is always the first to notice his brother's apathy and despair

Always giving his brother hugs, love and care until Sans is fine again.

* * *

 

 

When he says **I'M** **SORRY** , Papyrus doesn't elaborate its meaning.

Rejected, ridiculed, wasteful, thoughtlessness, reckless,

And all of this goes on and on as you will never know what part the skeleton wants to apologize for.

Papyrus might not even be thinking of the same things as you are, bowing his head slightly as he said sorry.

But then...

For a lonely monster, Papyrus' level of forgiveness is encompassing.

He'll forgive anyone, even when the monster was beyond redemption.

No one notices this though...

Because there isn't anyone left to see him do it.

 

The older brother can't help but fall in love with this side of his brother,

as he is unable to comprehend papyrus' being.

* * *

 

When Sans says **i'm** **sorry** , he's apologizing for a lot of things.

Failure, lazy, worthless, weak, useless, 

And it goes on and on because you know the skeleton's been through a lot, judging from the RESETS.

Sans might even stop smiling as he cries for forgiveness and sorrow, usually when he's drunk or at the verge of giving up.

Although,

Sans would greet and chat with you as if nothing happened The next day.

Even when he drinks and jokes around, Sans is the type to hold a grudge.

Everyone knows it's because of the RESETS....

So no one really needs to discuss the history in depth.

 

The younger brother is aware of his brother's behavior,

And he can't seem to understand Sans' rationality.

 

'BUT MAYBE THAT'S WHY SANS GIVES HIM A _SENSE_ _OF_ _COMFORT_ UNLIKE ANY OTHER?' 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The skeletons have their own set of problems.

When his statement starts with an **I WANT** , Papyrus thinks these trends or things are good for him.

Watching TV and listening to children, Papyrus must have put these ideas together and imagines they're good goals to achieve.

Sometimes, they are.

Sometimes, they aren't.

Sometimes,

The things, people and events he wants to occur will never happen at all.

Papyrus refuses to see this because he believes anything is possible.

A lot of people have given up telling the skeleton off,

Calling the young monster narcissistic.

  

The older brother doesn't really want to direct his younger brother's goals and ambitions in life.

As long as it's possible, he'll give as much support as he can for Papyrus to fulfill his dreams.

 

'he'll continue to support Papyrus, even when  _he isn't needed anymore_.' 

* * *

 

When Sans' statement starts with  **i want** , he often confuses this with need and obsession.

From a simple bottle of ketchup all the way to making sure the RESET doesn't happen again, 

the science-loving skeleton can be a bit extreme with his desires if pushed to a corner.

The corner being a scenario with no other way out.

But,

That doesn't mean it can't be understood.

That it can't be satisfied because it can.

People often lists out extreme solutions for extreme problems,

but it only takes a simple conversation with a promise to booth.

 

The younger brother knows how sentimental his older brother tends to be,

considering the fact Sans never seems to forget even the slightest of detail whenever possible.

 

 

 

* * *

 

> He's standing in the Judgement hall, looking at the approaching figure. Is it a Human or a Monster? No one can tell anymore. They're simply walking forward with **that expression**.

* * *

 

 

When Papyrus says  **PLEASE STAY** , he's saying this because his intuition tells him to.

Papyrus is pretty good when it comes to his senses,

but then Papyrus ignores his feelings because he wants to give the person another chance.

Pretty frustrating when Love is actually LOVE in that route.

Moving on,

Papyrus often states this statement when he has a nightmare

or when Papyrus doesn't want the day to end

or when Papyrus is scared of something

Or when Papyrus knows I-!

 

* :)

* * *

 

 

When he says  **please stay** , Sans would do whatever it takes for you to stay.

Whether you like it or not, he will insist that you stay wherever he wants you to remain in.

It doesn't matter to him if this event is important to you,

he just doesn't want you to fall into ~~LOVE~~ ~~DESPAIR~~   ~~PAIN~~....

Uh... Anyways,

Sans' actions aren't explicit by the way.

You'll only find out when it's too late.

People think they were made a fool of,

but Sans did it for his/her own good.

 

It's the younger brother's job to make sure Sans stays out of trouble

even when he  _has to do certain ACTS to a certain HUMAN given a certain CONDITION_.

 

* * *

 

> He doesn't know how long he's been FIGHTING to LIVE, only to RELIVE everything from the START. Because honestly, how will he know when it first started? All he knows is that the **thing** in front of him is the reason for all of this and he can do nothing to stop them.

* * *

 

 

When Papyrus says **I'M** **TIRED** , he means it.

Papyrus is never the type to lie.

When he does lie, he fails at it.

Unless you refuse to see through his mask then that's a problem.

Sadly,

Papyrus will pretend everything's okay.

He'll keep on pretending that he's okay

for the sake of everyone...

But everyone's sick of that.

 

When that happens, the older brother will offer a hand and do whatever it takes for his brother to recover,

even if it means  _killing the HUMAN before the ASSIGNED TIME._

* * *

 

 

When he says  **i'm tired** , Sans means it in all ways.

One should immediately remedy the fatigue before it's too late.

When Sans tries to shake the attention off, do not stop and think everything's going to be fine.

Sans is really good in pretending.

In fact,

Sans is so good that he doesn't tell anyone about anything about anyone.

Sans doesn't really open up to people because of the RESETs.

Sans thinks it's best to be ignorant and forget about the pain ahead.

But I want to tell him that I-!

 

*DETERMINATION

 

* * *

 

> He knows it's a matter of time before the Human will END this charade of GENOCIDE or PACIFIST. Hopefully, they'll stop and MOVE on with their lives. LIFE in the Underground/Surface will continue and everyone will be filled with HOPE/DESPAIR.

* * *

 

When Papyrus says  **I WANT TO TELL YOU SOMETHING** , expect something random.

Papyrus is often explicit in everything he does.

The guy might even be considered to be as dense as a rock.

Speaking of rock, Papyrus is still taking care of one.

Hm...?

Nowadays, Papyrus ACTs implicitly.

It's all to help the Human who came out of the door.

The Human I promised Toriel not to harm.

[They're holding a knife right now, smiling at me.]

 

welp. it's the older brother's job to avenge his younger brother...

sorry papyrus for allowing them to kill everyone you loved.

 

' _i wonder if you'll forgive me if you knew the things i did_ _?_ '

* * *

 

 

When Sans says  **i want to tell you something** , expect hell is coming over.

Sans never tells things unless everything is out of his CONTROL.

The skeleton might not look like it given his one HP,

but Sans is really sturdy in the mental department.

Ah...

Nowadays, Sans doesn't even bother socializing with the Humans in the Surface

or the new residents after the Human exits the Underground.

It's strange how the Human can change so quickly.

[From a stick to a gun, they're brimming with DETERMINATION.]

 

If this was in another timeline where the older brother lived, the younger brother wouldn't even be here in the first place...

I'm sorry Sans for my inability to tell you the truth. Now everyone's dead.

 

' _I hope you can judge my actions someday._ '

 

* * *

 

 

> The Human is walking closer, they want to say something but he already know what they're saying in the back of his head. Sometimes, he wonder who's manipulating the Human. Sometimes, he wonders if he can do something about this. Sometimes... He wished the Human means whatever they're saying.

* * *

 

When he says  **i give up** , Sans internally can't bring himself to do it.

That's why a lot of timelines have Sans changing his function.

He does something out of everyone's expectations.

That's why everyone likes him.

[Sans can go out of SCRIPT.]

 

 

When Papyrus says  **DON'T GIVE UP** , he means it more to himself than to the one he's talking to.

Even when the world seems bleak, the younger skeleton struggles to get through the day.

He does everything to the best of his ability.

That's why everyone likes him.

[Papyrus is so predictable.]

 

And it's the older brother's job to support his younger brother's DREAMS,

But his younger brother will do his best to bring out his older brother's HOPE!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Suggest what else can they say? I'm not a phrase-y person.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Understanding is one way of creating a problem.

_“_ _WHAT ARE YOU WRITING ABOUT?” Papyrus inquires, looking over Sans’ shoulder. Sans doesn’t really mind his brother, scribbling whatever comes to mind._

_“nut-thing.” Sans lies, but his smile and the parchment on his cabinet doesn’t convince his brother otherwise. The taller skeleton looks at the paper, reading the goofy font quickly before his brother notices._

 

>                 papyrus is the type of friend who elects himself to walk in front of the group, wanting to be the leader and front man in case any dangerous and accidental scenario presents itself.

 

_“hey. that’s a breach of privacy.” Sans says in a false tone of annoyance from his brother, ‘trying’ to get his pen back from his brother._

_“IT ISN’T IF THE PEN IS TALKING ABOUT ME!” Papyrus taunts, also grabbing the paper and placing it on the wall as a site of writing._  

 

> accidental scenario presents itself. WHILE SANS IS THE TYPE OF FRIEND WHO WALKS BEHIND THE GROUP, LISTENING TO EVERYONE WITH A LAZY STROLL. SANS CALLS HIMSELF A BACK-UP MEMBER IN CASE SOMETHING BAD OCCURS.

 

_“huh…” Sans stares at the description laid in front of him. It’s quite literal, having the paper fall neatly on the surface after Papyrus finished writing. “that’s pretty accurate. thanks bro.”_

_“NYEH HEHEHEH! WHAT DID YOU EXPECT FROM THE GREAT PAPYRUS?!” Papyrus stands straight with his scarf moving from a nonexistent breeze. “NOW! IF YOU EXCUSE ME, I WILL BE COOKING A DELICIOUS MEAL OF SPAGHETTI IN CASE A HUMAN ARRIVES!”_

_“you do that bro” Sans supports his brother as he taps his pen on the paper. When he’s sure Papyrus is gone, the comedian continues the essay._

 

 

> HIMSELF A BACK-UP MEMBER IN CASE SOMETHING BAD OCCURS. secretly, papyrus walks in front so he’s assured someone would at least notice him or talk to him even for a tiny bit.

 

* * *

 

 

_Later that evening, Sans went off to hang out in Grillby’s. Papyrus knows he shouldn’t intrude in other people’s business, but he really wants to know the motive of Sans’ ACT. Entering his brother’s room, the tall skeleton tilts his head as he read his brother’s comment. ‘SO… THIS IS HOW WE PLAY HUH?’_

_“THERE!” Papyrus makes sure he returned everything in order before Sans notices anything._

_“I’m home! uh papyrus? you there?” When Sans returned, he just knows Papyrus’ silence meant one thing. His brother entered his room. Taking a shortcut, Sans turns silent._

 

 

> even for a tiny bit. SANS IS THE OPPOSITE, NOT WANTING TO BE AT THE CENTER OF ATTENTION SINCE HE LIKES LISTENING TO PEOPLE.

 

_“you know me too well.” Sans hums, not irritated or angry yet that doesn’t mean he won’t let this off. Pulling out the pen, Sans finds it really eerie how **impeccable** Papyrus’ memory goes._

_“heh. there we go.” Sans finalizes the paragraph but feels bad for ending it. He’ll just start another topic to go on with._

 

 

 

> even for a tiny bit. SANS IS THE OPPOSITE, NOT WANTING TO BE AT THE CENTER OF ATTENTION SINCE HE LIKES LISTENING TO PEOPLE. papyrus doesn’t want to admit it, but he’s envious how everyone is simply allured to sans’ silence.

 

 

>                 when papyrus asks his friends to wait, they don’t really wait since they’re too excited to look around the area. sans feels guilty to confess this, but he too tends to leave his brother and look through the stores. the feeling of guilt worsens [after a couple of **repetitions** ] when sans realize papyrus is the one who invited everyone in the first place.

 

_“…” Sans feels even more depressed for reading his words. He sighs, crumbling the paper and throwing at his sock cyclone. Slumping to his bed, the skeleton embraces slumber._

_“…” On the other side of the room, Papyrus stares at the window. Restless but unwilling to move, Papyrus sits up to pull out a junior jumble from his pillow._

* * *

 

               sans doesn’t know why people leave his awesome brother behind even when papyrus requested them to wait, but the people feign ignorance.

 

_“AH. YOU’RE MAKING A NEW ONE?” Papyrus seems confuse, watching his brother write another note(?) as he watches another episode of MTT Shows. “WHERE DID THE OLD ONE GO?”_

_“threw it.” Sans mutters, unhindered by the flashing lights from the TV screen. “since it was a **scratch** , i could scrap and cut into it.”_

_“OH NO- WAIT A MINUTE. WAS THAT A PUN?” Papyrus asks, looking for a pen to add his wonderful input as well. Sans replied, “under the table.”_

_“OH THANK YOU.” Papyrus pulls off the cap and stares at his brother’s essay. Sans gives space, not knowing how to break the sullen aura of his work._

 

 

>                 sans doesn’t know why people leave his awesome brother behind even when papyrus requested them to wait, but ~~the people feign ignorance.~~ HE KNOWS HIS FRIENDS ARE BUSY WITH OTHER THINGS SUCH AS THEIR LOVE LIFE OR JOB.

 

_“…still sad.” Sans shakes his head while Papyrus tries to fix it. Papyrus thinks to himself and examines the TV for any valuable insight. Sans looks as well but… ‘nope. it’s just a strange cooking show with a robot.’_

_“I HAVE IT!” Papyrus begins to write with renewed vigor. Reading the words while slurping his ketchup bottle, Sans’ eye lights went off from the new information. Finished writing, Papyrus sits back and nods at his part. “THERE WE GO! NO MORE NEGATIVITY!”_

 

 

 

> HIS FRIENDS ARE BUSY WITH OTHER THINGS SUCH AS THEIR LOVE LIFE OR JOB. PAPYRUS DOESN’T MIND THE LACK OF ATTENTION BECAUSE HE WAS BETTER OFF BEING A FRIEND THAN A CRUSH UNLIKES SANS. THE NUMBER OF INVITATIONS IN HIS MAILBOX AS WELL AS THE CONNECTIONS SANS HAS MADE IN VARIOUS REGIONS OF HOTLAND HAS LED TO A SINGLE POINT. SANS IS SECRETLY AN IDOL!

 

_“pff.” Sans covers his mouth, smiling at his brother’s strange conjectures. Papyrus frowns, “YOUR TURN!”_

_“okay okay…” Sans can’t help snicker, browsing the essay. He makes another paragraph, feeling strange for even wanting to continue this._

 

>                 it is unclear as to why a lot of people like to bring sans along, probably because of his puntastic jokes, but it is no lie to mention the number of admirers trailing behind his pink slippers…

 

_“YOU RUINED IT!” Papyrus wails as he stands up but Sans gives gun hands, “nah. you can say i…”_

_“DON’T SAY IT!” Papyrus warned, holding the pen ‘menacingly.’ Sans winked, “…floored this one.”_

_“ARGHH!” Papyrus tries to stab Sans with the pen, only to have the brother sidestep and watch the skeleton’s face land face-first to the floor._

_“I WANT A NEW BROTHER!” Papyrus screams, but Sans sits on the table and jokes to the skeleton, “but bro, i’m **irreplaceable**.”_

  

* * *

 

>                 IT IS UNCLEAR AS TO WHY A LOT OF PEOPLE LIKE TO BRING SANS ALONG, PROBABLY BECAUSE OF HIS PUNTASTIC JOKES, BUT IT IS NO LIE TO MENTION THE NUMBER OF ADMIRERS TRAILING BEHIND **HIS SHADOW** …

 

“…” Papyrus rewrites on a clean sheet, looking at the sentence his brother made. He doesn’t know why, but he wants to try writing something about his brother.

‘IT MUST BE FUN RIGHT?’ Papyrus thinks to himself, ‘HAVING A NOTE TO REMIND YOU HOW YOUR BROTHER WORKS…’

 

 

>                 IT IS UNCLEAR AS TO WHY A LOT OF PEOPLE LIKE TO BRING SANS ALONG, PROBABLY BECAUSE OF HIS PUNTASTIC JOKES, BUT IT IS NO LIE TO MENTION THE NUMBER OF ADMIRERS TRAILING BEHIND HIS SHADOW… EVEN WITH THE NUMBER OF INVITATIONS, SANS LACKS THE MOTIVATION TO FIND HIMSELF ENTERING THESE EVENTS. SOMETIMES, SANS WOULDN’T EVEN BOTHER GOING OUT ANYMORE UNLESS HIS YOUNGER BROTHER WAKES HIM UP.

 

_“…” Papyrus turns silent, staring at the paper. ‘HUH. SANS WAS RIGHT. WRITING CAN BE PRETTY SAD IF YOU’RE TOO INTENT ON DESCRIBING SOMEONE….’_

_“BUT THAT CAN’T BE RIGHT… SANS IS USUALLY A HAPPY PERSON.” Papyrus reasons to no one in particular, trying to write once more but about himself._

 

>             SOMETIMES, I WONDER IF PEOPLE REALLY LIKE PAPYRUS. PAPYRUS MUST BE SO LONELY, NOT AWARE IF PEOPLE ARE EVEN READING HIS POSTS. THE SKELETON DOESN’T EVEN GET MAIL NOR DOES HE HAVE ANY ~~WORK~~ ~~PURPOSE~~

 

…

 

_“STILL NO GOOD…” Papyrus can’t write anymore. More like he doesn’t want to describe himself anymore._

_“OH WELL.” Papyrus places the paper onto the table with his action figures, heading back to his Junior Jumble. The skeleton pushes the lingering thoughts at the back of his head, hoping Sans understands him better than himself._

* * *

 

 

_When Sans saw the work, he threw it in the trash bin._


	4. Suggestion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It takes a long while before the skeleton brothers are able to work in tandem.

The first time Sans said it, Papyrus laughed at the idea. Coming back from Grillby’s, Sans must be drunk or something…. Knowing that flame elemental.

 

The second time Sans said it, Papyrus shouted at his brother in annoyance. Not missing a beat, Sans asked their friend if whatever he said was wrong... And Undyne simply laughed.

 

The third time Sans said it, Papyrus begged him to stop talking. Dying in his arms, Sans must be saying whatever comes to mind… Never knowing the intentions of that Human.

 

The fourth time Sans said it, Papyrus started questioning the real meaning behind it. Few weeks after they reached the Surface, the brothers watched the night sky… But they never saw the next day.

 

The fifth time Sans said it, Papyrus responded with mild acceptance. Occupying the couch, Sans started beating his chest hard while Toriel pat his back… Yet no one asked why.

 

* * *

 

The first time Papyrus told Sans about it, Sans stared at his brother dubiously. Coming back from his ‘Royal Guard training,’ Papyrus came up with this ‘strange realization’ after hearing Undyne’s story. Then, Sans had the audacity to reply with a pun.

 

The second time Papyrus told Sans, it was now in a form of an inquiry. A request if Papyrus can call whatever he said that way. Sans didn’t respond back; the older skeleton’s probably drunk at the time.

 

The third time Papyrus confided it to Sans… It was before he would meet the human as the ‘final’ boss of Snowdin. Sans gave the same answer like every other time, casual and punny _with a hint of worry and despair_.

 

The fourth time Papyrus said it to Sans, they were at the Surface with all of their friends. Alphys found his statement cute, but Mettaton found it dramatic _for some reason?_ Undyne said she wants in too.

 

The fifth time Papyrus said it; the taller skeleton watched his older brother smile at him and asked for more detail.

**Author's Note:**

> Yup. Those two are examining the other. He he.


End file.
